Where to Start & General Information

Types of College Applications

There are three main types of college applications:

School-specific Applications (the college’s own application, such as College of DuPage)
System Applications (University of Wisconsin system, University of California system, etc. - includes all campuses in one app)
Application Platforms: (The Common Application, The Coalition Application - one application accepted by many partner colleges)

Some colleges allow the student to choose how they apply because they accept both. (TIP: Don't do extra work! If you can use one application platform and use it for multiple schools, do that!)

Types of Admissions Plans

There are a few different types of admissions plans. It is important you know the difference so you can choose which process is the best fit for you!

Regular Decision- you submit an application by a certain date and you receive a decision in a stated period of time. This is a non-binding commitment.
Rolling Admissions- Colleges review applications as they are submitted to them. They make decisions throughout the admissions cycle- there is not one specific date you will find out about their decision. This is a non-binding commitment.
Early Action (EA)- Students apply early (often before Nov.1) and receive a decision in advance of the college's regular decision response date. This is a non-binding commitment.
Early Decision (ED)- Students make a commitment that this college is their first choice. If the student were to be admitted to this college they have to enroll and withdrawal all other college applications. This is a BINDING commitment. Your parents and counselor need to sign off on your application is you choose to apply ED.
Restrictive Early Action (REA)- Students apply to an institution of preference and recieve their decision early. They may be restricted from applying ED or EA to other institutions. This is a non-binding commitment.

SchooLinks: College Application Manager

The SchooLinks College Application Manager allows you to:

Track the progress and requirements for your college applications.
Organize of all the application materials for the colleges where you're applying.
Request your application materials including transcripts, letters of recommendation, etc. to be sent to the desired institution.

College Application Manager serves as an easy way to keep track of all the application steps and materials you need to submit to colleges and when you need to submit them, but it is not an application portal. You will need to submit applications using the methods offered by the colleges where you're applying.

To access Application Manager, click the Colleges icon.

Then click College Applications.

The first time you use the College Application Manager, you will complete a FERPA waiver for SchooLinks.
For each college you'd like to apply to, you'll need to set up an application and its requirements. Note: If you would like to apply using Common App, you will need to set up your Common App account.
You'll be able to track the status of your application materials on SchooLinks. To learn more, go to Tracking Application Requirements
After you have tracked your application, you will be able to indicate your application results and indicate your enrollment decision.

Applying Common App?

Visit the Common App page for more information and the Common App Cheat Sheet!

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